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Football Tickets, How to purchase?

I thought if anyone could help it would be the savvy travelers on this sit so here goes:
My family and I will be in London over the weekend of September 13. Chelsea, Arse and Palace all have home matches that weekend.
It appears that without purchasing 3 'memberships' to either Chelsea or Arse I have no prayer of getting tickets and even with a membership the odd are slim. I really ahven't checked into Crystal Palace yet but I would think those may be a bit easier to obtain but what do I know.
How would I attempt to obtain tickets for either Chelsea or Arse? Arsenal plays Man City so that could be a tough ticket. Is it even realistic to think I can even get tickets without having to pony up 200 pounds a ticket? There is a Chanpionship games that day and
both Bentford and Leyton Orient have games as well so we have options. I would like to take my son to a BPL game if possible.
Any suggestions of experiences would be great.
I have corresponded with the ticket offices of Arsenal and Chelsea and that have been very helpful but not too encouraging.
Thanks again for any and all help.

Posted by
449 posts

Hi Curt:

Here is the thread that I started one month ago about getting football tickets (eg, does joining a club help?) Hope you glean some useful information from it:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/england/a-ticket-to-attend-a-football-soccer-match-in-london-does-club-membership-help

As much as I would love to see an English football match in London I don't think it will happen on my trip in late August - early September. I will still work on this but also am working on my list of things to see and do and line up an alternative activity for the day that has been targeted for football.

Best wishes.
Geor(ge)

Posted by
9100 posts

You should be able to score CP tickets without much hassle. Getting a membership with Arsenal/Chelsea can help secure tickets via resale sites like Viagogo.com. They have arrangements with the clubs to allow members to sell/purchase tickets. The price can be prohibitive for some of the high profile matches, but there is always availability.

Posted by
56 posts

Thanks Geor, I read your thread and pretty much confirmed what I had discovered. I just wonder if the membership helps on the secondary market, i.e., Stubhub or Viagogo? If I understand the process I would need 3 memberships to get 3 tix. Palace seems like a decent option, about an hour train ride from where we are staying. I am not the sort when I travel to wait until 3-4 weeks before I leave to get something like this firmed up. No one puts any extra tickets on sale until a month or so before the match it seems. My impatient side will probably get the best of me. How long of a trip and what would cost be to Southhampton? They have a game that day as well.

Posted by
111 posts

Curt -
If you're staying at a hotel, the concierge should be able to help. I've seen 4 matches over the years, including Arsenal-Chelsea at The Emirates in '10. The cost was prohibitive, but I thought worth it if you're a fan of one of the teams. I've also been to Sellhurst Park where Palace plays and it is very intimate and a great experience.
Larry

Posted by
98 posts

Curt

As a Saints fan the answer as to how long to get to Southampton is 90ish minutes from Waterloo. There are buses direct to the stadium or it's a twenty minute walk. It is a nice, new, medium sized ground and last year you would have seen great football. However lots of the best players have caught the eye of bigger if not better clubs so I can't promise how good they will be this season. I think tickets for the Newcastle match should be obtainable.

A return ticket costs £38 but if three people travel together there are group savings available as long as you travel together.